Arroyo like Jesus Christ?
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 03:22:00 12/03/2008
Filed Under: Politics, Personalities
Cebu province’s Rep. Pablo Garcia should ne ashamed of himself. In his ardent desire to defend and protect his patroness, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who the majority of Filipinos see as having lost public trust and confidence and, therefore, should be impeached, he likened her to Jesus Christ.
That he should defend President Arroyo is quite understandable, but for him to liken her to Jesus Christ is the height of delusion and blasphemy. Andres Bonifacio, the Katipuneros, Jose Rizal, Macario Sakay and the Filipino martyrs who fought for our freedom, as well as great men and women of faith, must be turning in their graves over this great sacrilege. Imagine comparing Jesus Christ to an allegedly illegitimate and a generally perceived very corrupt president whose hands are red with the blood of thousands of victims of human rights violations.
Jesus Christ is most revered in the salvific history of God’s people. Thus, it is unforgivable to compare Jesus to Ms Arroyo whose life and work are the exact opposite of Christ’s life, work and ministry.
Ms Arroyo cannot even be compared to Judas. At least, Jesus chose Judas to be one of his disciples. Ms Arroyo still has to prove she has the mandate to lead the Filipino nation, given the massive cheating that tainted the 2004 elections. At least, Judas showed remorse and hanged himself when he realized his betrayal led to the death of his teacher. Ms Arroyo continues to deny the corruption and crimes of her administration and refuses to hold herself accountable for the more than 900 extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances recorded under her presidency.
Ms Arroyo cannot even be compared to the thief who was crucified along with Jesus Christ. At least, the thief admitted his crime when he said, “We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve.” (Luke 23:41). Ms Arroyo cannot even be compared to Zacchaeus, a man of short stature in Jesus time, who amassed wealth from collecting taxes and serving as a lapdog of the Roman Empire. The people despised him so much for serving the interests of a foreign master while he made them suffer from taxation. But Zacchaeus repented, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” (Luke 19:18)
Ms Arroyo cannot be compared to these people who at certain point in time were enemies of the people. If there is someone who can be compared to Ms Arroyo, it is Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor who was officially responsible for Jesus’ death and who “washed his hands” to blame the Jews for His crucifixion.
Ms Arroyo is widely known for her public display of religiosity. Would she call the attention of her ardent fan and defender Representative Garcia for this act of blasphemy? Or she would rather believe that she is, indeed, like Jesus Christ?
NORMA P. DOLLAGA, Kapatirang Simbahan Para sa Bayan (Kasimbayan), kasimbayan@yahoo.com.ph
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